Fredrickson is being honored for his work in plasma physics and fusion energy. He was cited for his many contributions to the physics of magnetohydrodynamics, which focuses on the instabilities in hot gases confined within the doughnut-shaped reactors known as tokamaks.

Selloni is being cited for her computational studies of surfaces and interfaces "which made possible the interpretation of complex experiments, and successfully predicted the physical, and chemical properties of broad classes of materials," according to the society.

Sondhi is being recognized for his work in an area of condensed matter physics known as "strongly correlated electronic systems." In these, which include quantum Hall systems, quantum magnets and the cuprate superconductors, the interactions among electrons are qualitatively important, as opposed to many physical systems whose properties are adequately explained by the behavior of independent electrons.

The honor is a lifetime appointment. The fellowship program was created to recognize original research and publication, contributions to the teaching of physics, as well as service and participation in the society.